Power generation in Pakistan stood at 10,262 GWh (13,793 MW) in October 2024, an increase of over 7% YoY compared to the same period of the previous year.

Back in October 2023, power generation stood at9,572 GWh.

On a monthly basis, power generation declined by 17.8% as compared to 12,487 (17,343 MW) in September.

In the first four months of FY25 (July-October), power generation fell by 5% YoY to 50,808 GWh compared to 53,709 GWh in the SPLY.

Analysts have voiced concerns over the decline in Pakistan’s electricity consumption amid sluggish economic activity and high energy costs.

Adding to the challenge is a growing shift towards alternative energy sources, especially solar, which has become increasingly popular among residential and commercial sectors. This rising trend has left decision-makers grappling with its implications for the national grid and energy sector.

Meanwhile, actual generation exceeded the reference generation by 0.7% for the first time in 13 months, noted Arif Habib Limited.

“The generation cost was Rs1.02/KWh lower than the actual cost of Rs9.26/KWh (including transmission losses), resulting in a negative FCA.”

On the other hand, the total cost of generating electricity in Pakistan increased significantly by 10%, clocking in at Rs9.06 KWh in October 2024 compared to Rs8.26 KWh registered in the same period of the previous year.

The increase in cost is attributed to the rise in power generation cost from imported coal, which rose to Rs16.91 KWh, a gain of over 27%, compared to Rs13.27 KWh in SPLY.

Experts attributed the rise in fuel cost to lower productionfrom nuclear, a cheaper power source, which declined by 21% year-on-year, and an increased reliance on costly imported coal, which saw its generation surge by 169% YoY.

In October, hydel emerged as the leading source of power generation, accounting for 31.1% of the generation mix, to become the largest source of electricity generation.

This was followed by RLNG, which accounted for 19.5% of the overall generation, ahead of coal (local), which accounted for 14.8% of the power generation share.

Among renewables, wind, solar and bagasse generation amounted to 1.9%, 1% and 0.5%, respectively, of the generation mix.